5 Ways Automated Packaging Equipment Delivers Benefits ...

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Now that we&#;re into the final stretch of , you may be rapidly facing the need to make a &#;use it or lose it&#; decision regarding your allocated capital equipment budget.

If you have the budget available, great! If you don&#;t have money appropriated, you can still take advantage of the benefits of automated packaging equipment through leasing programs.

What can automation do for you today?

Businesses of all shapes and sizes can take advantage of the labor, material and cost-saving benefits that result from automated packaging solutions.

You can realize immediate positive cash flow from savings generated from the automated equipment purchase, whether using up that capital budget or leasing. And additional tax benefits are available. In particular, Section 179 of the Tax Cuts and Job Act of offers generous write-off and depreciation schedules. Please make sure you consult with your tax adviser to determine how this could impact your business.

Let&#;s look at a few of the ways that automated packaging equipment can benefit your business today.

1. Reduce labor costs

It&#;s pretty obvious that replacing manual functions with an automated machine will reduce your labor costs. Take adding a stretch wrapper to eliminate hand wrapping of pallets, for example. Did you know that these machines can easily be justified with a volume of just 10 to 15 loads per day?

To uncover less obvious ways of reducing labor costs, a knowledgeable equipment specialist can survey your entire operation from the beginning to the end of the line. This includes conducting a comprehensive time study and a review of all contributing factors to the efficiency of your packaging operations. In addition, an ROI analysis would be included in any recommendations for equipment solutions or design changes.

Have you set aside workers to help set up boxes for production? Perhaps it&#;s time to look at a case erector. This type of equipment also pre-tapes box bottoms and can be easily integrated into your production line.

The following infographic compares the associated costs for a manual -box operation to using one case erector (along with the potential ROI timeframe).

2. Improve efficiency

Are your forklift operators wasting valuable time idling around a stretch wrapper waiting for the load to finish wrapping? A dual turntable will efficiently ensure that a second pallet is wrapped and ready to move to its intended destination while the next load is wrapping.

Or, if employees are double handling loads in order to move them to a weigh scale after wrapping, you can eliminate that extra handling cost by directly integrating a weigh scale into a stretch wrapper.

Take a close look at the end of your packaging lines. Does there seem to be a bottleneck around the taper or pack out stations? Is there a concentration of workers at one station? Have you set up preassembly areas just for packaging? These could be opportunities where automated packaging could help you improve your throughput.

3. Add capacity

If you&#;ve recently embarked on business-to-consumer (B2C) sales, you may need to set up an offline operation for this sales channel. Different packaging design and materials are often required due to the unique challenges of B2C sales.

A well-designed system of conveyors and workstations outfitted with void fill delivery systems, tapers and labelers may be all that&#;s required to boost productivity.

If you&#;re currently operating overseas, fully automatic lines can help justify returning manufacturing to the U.S. For example, blister packaging can be fully automated to greatly reduce costs which then levels the playing field a little better for domestic production. And, as you can appreciate by now, onshoring can help you regain better control of your operations.

4. Eliminate safety issues due to manual operations or outdated equipment

Don&#;t wait until it&#;s too late for an accident to happen. Proactively survey your entire packaging operation for any potential safety hazards.

Back injuries from manually wrapping pallet loads, carpal tunnel syndrome from repetitive motion during package assembly, or a lack of safety guards on older equipment, are all areas that can be addressed with updated packaging equipment. In addition to taking better care of your employees, eliminating workers&#; compensation claims will easily justify your equipment purchase.

5. Reduce material costs

Research has proven that poorly maintained stretch wrap machines can use up to 50 percent more stretch film than when they were new. And, newer models offer even more cost reduction.  They can handle newer engineered films designed to wrap loads at the lowest possible cost while improving load integrity.

By using this handy film cost calculator, you can clearly see the potential savings that updating your equipment can bring to your shipping operation.

Automatic shrink wrappers use less film than with manual L-bars because the bag sizing can be more consistent. And in many cases, the scrap trim can be narrower. With more consistent seals and improved tunnel performance, your reworks and scrap rates will decrease further delivering substantial cost savings.

These are just a few ways that automated packaging equipment can deliver significant cost savings and efficiencies to your packaging operations.

There&#;s still time to use those budget dollars, so contact us today to schedule an appointment with a knowledgeable equipment specialist. We&#;ll help you evaluate your packaging operation and uncover the potential benefits of the automated solutions that are right for your business.

For more information, please visit Pallet Wrapping Automation Equipment.

Benefits of Orbital Stretch Wrappers

Still using manual stretch wrap methods? That's alright for low volume applications where packaging equipment isn't needed. If you're looking for a better process for high volume applications, orbital stretch wrappers can help. These machines are ideal for securing over-sized, oddly shaped, and palletized loads. Orbital machines wrap the film all the way around the pallet by rotating the film. Compared to other stretch wrappers, orbital wrappers tend to get higher throughput speeds. This is because the palletized loads don't need to be rotated at high speeds, instead the machine wraps around the pallet.

5 reasons to change your stretch wrapping process

1. Productivity
2. Cost savings
3. Safety
4. Consistent application
5. Load integrity

Productivity

Orbital stretch wrappers can work long hours, while maintaining a consistently high quality. Using these machines boosts your pack to ship performance while minimizing labor costs. Most loads are wrapped in under 3 minutes, think you can beat that time by manually wrapping the pallet? Stretch wrapping systems are one of the fastest ways to boost your end-of-line packaging efficiency. These machines eliminate the need for operators to manually attach the film tail to the load, then cut and secure the film tail at the end of the cycle.

Cost savings

If you're hand wrapping 20 or more loads per day, it's more cost-effective to use an orbital stretch wrapper than to apply stretch wrap by hand. You could see an ROI in as little as 6 months when investing in stretch wrap equipment. Material savings are huge with orbital stretch wrappers. They can reduce the cost of stretch film by up to 75% compared to the manual wrapping process. Also, by stabilizing the load and wrapping properly, you can recover nearly 50% of your potentially damaged products.

Safety

An orbital stretch wrapping machine eliminates side to side movements of hand wrapping that commonly lead to back injuries. Packaging equipment like stretch wrappers also eliminate injuries associated with metal banding strapping. The constant bending and twisting and lifting required to wrap a pallet is taken out of the equation, instead, just press a button and let the machine do the work for you.

Consistent application

Most machine applied stretch wrap is pre-stretched at least 200%. This results in a tighter load while using less product. Also, you know you're getting the same wrap each and every time. Compare that to an operator wrapping a pallet on a certain day, and a different operator wrapping on another day. They're not going to be the same and that leads to more damaged product and inconsistency in your packaging process.

Load integrity

The top, middle, and bottom layers of your load need to all have the correct amount of containment force. (The wrap force multiplied by the number of film layers) The right amount of containment force depends on the type of load you&#;re wrapping. Heavy loads may require more containment force and lighter loads may require less. With an orbital stretch wrapper, you'll get the correct about of containment force every single time you use the machine. The load integrity will stay the same from the 1st pallet wrap of the day, to the last.

Orbital stretch wrappers: Case studies

When it comes to packaging equipment like orbital stretch wrappers, you want to hear about actual results. How have these machines impacted other companies' operations? Here's some real facts.

Metal fabricator gets proven ROI

Their shipping challenges included:

• Reducing ergonomic related worker injuries
• Decreasing excessive labor costs
• Lowering shipping time and bottlenecks

Orbital stretch wrapper solution:

Installing a stretch wrapping machine triplex their shipping capacity and helped eliminate downtime. The metal fabricator went from wrapping 30 pallets a day to 90 pallets a day. Their proven ROI was delivered in just 6 months.

Appliance manufacturer triples their productivity

Their shipping challenges included:

• Damage free shipments of slippery, odd-shaped loads
• Reducing excessive labor costs and shipping time
• Elminating banding related worker injuries

Orbital stretch wrapper solution:

It used to take two workers to wrap a pallet in 15 minutes, now one operator can effectively wrap a pallet it under 5 minutes. The company tripled their pack to ship productivity with proven ROI of $ in savings each week. Installing the orbital machine successfully eliminated product damage during shipping and those banding related worker injuries.

Machine tool builder streamlines shipping operation

Their shipping challenges included:

• Streamlining internal packaging and shipping operations
• Minimizing labor requirements and costs
• Eliminating damages to parts

Orbital stretch wrapper solution:

IPS Packaging's installation of the ITW Muller Yellow Jacket led to nearly $20,000 in yearly savings. They improved their damage rates, and streamlined their internal packaging process. Their work was cut in half by using the machine, using a more efficient stretch wrapping process.

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If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Homemade Pallet Wrapping Machine.